In Twenty
by Cassandra's Destiny
Summary: It’s not twenty truths. Twenty lies is more like it. [NejiTenten]


_Standard disclaimers apply._

**IN TWENTY**

_**By Cassandra's Destiny**_

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_It's not twenty truths. Twenty lies is more like it._

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1. When Tenten found out who her team mates were, she thought her team's future was filled with bleakness and embarrassment. When asked by Iruka how she felt about her new team, however, she immediately beamed and said her team's future is going to be great and there are no other three people she would rather be in a team with.

2. Gai-sensei was overbearing, and it was obvious they'd rename their team to Team Gai. Tenten hated the name, primarily because she thought it was tacky and too Gai-centered. When asked by their jounin mentor what they thought about it, Lee eagerly raised his hand and proclaimed its youthfulness and uniqueness. Neji let out a silent grunt. Tenten smiled and said it's the best team name ever thought of in Konoha.

3. Lee has always been too eager to please Gai, too eager to please Neji, but never really too eager to please Tenten. Whenever Lee confides in her about losing to Neji, she offers him a smile and says he can beat Neji any time, even without exerting any of his youthful efforts. Tenten cringes inwardly.

4. The first time she sparred with Neji, she had a hard time keeping up. Her muscles were sore, her eyes were tired, and her head was throbbing in pain. When Neji asked her if she was okay, she simply nodded and got into her fighting stance once more. There was no way in hell she'd admit to him she was hurting, no way in hell she'd risk being called weak by the Hyuuga prodigy.

5. When asked if Tenten likes Kiba, she shakes her head no. When asked if Tenten likes Shikamaru, she shakes her head no. When asked if Tenten likes Kankuro, she shakes her head no. When asked if Tenten likes Sasuke, she shakes her head no. When asked if Tenten looks up to Gai, she shakes her head no. When asked if Tenten admires Lee, she says she does and loves him like a brother. When asked if Tenten loves Neji, she turns red and asks them never to think that again. She lied two out of seven times.

6. In her academy days, she automatically goes in defensive mode when asked about her surname and her family. She tells her classmates her surname is so historically significant that it has to be kept a secret. Her family, too, is a highly esteemed clan in the village, so much so that she cannot disclose any information about them to ensure their safety.

7. In a potluck for an all-girls afternoon bash, Tenten's dish, the TAPOTO, was the most popular. Sakura's freshly-baked brownies and Ino's Caesar salad tied for second most popular dish. Hinata's version of the Ichiraku Ramen came in third, and Temari's "wind of eyeballs", as she called it, was dead last. Praises and compliments came Tenten's way all night. Little did they know, TAPOTO actually stands for The Astonishing Power Of Take-Out.

8. The first and only time she cooked for her team mates lead to an emergency trip to the hospital. When questioned by the receptionist of the possible cause of the problem, she swallowed hard and told her about the band of missing nins who have probably ambushed their camp, including their food supply, during their last mission.

9. Contrary to popular belief, Tenten does not dislike dresses as much as the other ninjas in Konoha made it seem. In fact, she has dresses coming in every color imaginable. But when asked by Gai to wear a bright green dress for a special celebration in the village to match his and Lee's youthful and fashionable green suits with checkered ties, she furiously shook her head and said she had no dresses at home, let alone a green one, and never in a million years a bright green one.

10. Because Neji's life mostly revolved around training and improving his jutsus, he comes to their training grounds at least half an hour earlier than the time decided. In a tremendous twist of fate, at least, for Tenten, Neji saw her practicing intensely outdoors with her weapons, with the wind virtually lifting her feet from the ground and throwing off her aim. When questioned by Neji if it had anything to do with her fight with Temari months ago, she narrates to him her confrontation with the older girl a few weeks back, wherein they shook hands and decided to put the past completely behind them. She scoffs then walks away, muttering incoherent things like 'sand', 'damn', 'wind', 'hell' and 'woman'.

11. Tenten never missed a sparring session with Neji. The first time she was about half an hour late to training, he rushed to her house to come pick her up. Sparring time is important after all. When he opened the door and saw a disgruntled, heavy-eyed Tenten, he asked her to get some rest, but she declined, dragging him to sit on her sofa and wait for her, telling him about how he should not jump into conclusions because she is not tired and definitely not sleepy.

12. The first time Neji practically slammed her on a tree and kissed her, she was shocked, astonished, bowled over, confused, startled, befuddled, perplexed, dazed and overwhelmed. When they finally pulled away, she said to him, almost in whisper, that what he did was something expected so she was not surprised at all.

13. When questioned by Lee why her lips were swollen the night after sparring with Neji, she smacked him at the back of his head and told him not to tell anyone about it. When questioned again by Lee why not, she told him her lips get swollen every time people say the word 'swollen'. When questioned by Lee for the last time, and Tenten made sure it was the last, why no one else must know, she explained that if people did, they might say the word 'swollen' over and over and her lips will explode, which will bring about Konoha's destruction.

14. The morning after, Neji asked her what the word 'swollen' does to her. Raising a brow, she asked him how the thought came about, and stories of Lee begging everyone in the village not to say the word 'swollen' in Tenten's presence was brought to her knowledge. Neji asked again, and all she said was she never told Lee anything about the word 'swollen'.

15. On the night Neji asked her to be his bride, she rested her head on his shoulder and told him he was lucky to have her, when in fact, deep inside, she knew, she was the one lucky to have him.

16. Tenten fainted during their wedding ceremony, making Neji grow worried. When asked if she was fine, she told him she only fainted because the occasion has brought too much stress and excitement at the same time. In reality, though, she fainted because her dress was so tight and so heavy that she could not breathe.

17. Called for by Hiashi for unknown reasons at first, she consciously lied to the older Hyuuga, denying any doubtful allegations from their honeymoon and attesting Neji was gentle yet highly in command like a Hyuuga should be. Implications aside, she didn't want Hiashi to think Neji was not man enough to take her on their wedding night, especially when in truth, nothing happened between them in their honeymoon turned red.

18. The first time they made love, Tenten got so ecstatic yet exhausted and asked Neji if they can take a breather. When he wanted to know what she thought of it, she pouted and told him it's not like it's the best because there really were no comparisons. After feeding his ego in their wedding ceremony and many times more in the past, she decided his pride needed to be taken down a notch or two, and this was probably the only way.

19. During their first mission as husband and wife, Tenten deliberately etched out the family name of the Hyuugas in her personal file, upsetting Neji at first. She told him it was too embarrassing if she was going to fail the mission as a Hyuuga, bringing shame to the family name. Until now, Tenten still isn't sure if that was the truth or a lie. Neji knew which one it was though.

20. When Tenten undoes her buns late in the evening and Neji walks up behind her to tell her he loves her, she faces him and tells him she loves him too. And it's the honest truth; she was certain. She has done enough lying to last her a lifetime.


End file.
